Once in-game, the keyboard controls do the job, although just barely. Having to run the character using just the keyboard makes it difficult to land hits on opponents; it's easier for the player to constantly use an area of effect attack instead. The camera doesn't do anything on its own either, forcing the player to control it as well. You can pan the camera manually or just hit a key to reset it behind the player. For instance, if the character turns around on the screen, the camera faces forward, making it impossible to see what you're attacking. So, for every turning movement the character makes, the player must either reset the camera or just hack-and-slash blindly.

On a positive note, there are a lot of unique characters to play with, each with his or her own unique special moves and attacks. Moreover, the ability to select a team of three warriors and then change among them in mid-battle is a satisfying feature. The ability to increase the abilities of the characters is also a nice touch, but nothing a veteran of the series hasn't come to expect.

The voice acting stands out as some of the worst ever, but it seems more like comic relief than anything. And even if it isn't Half-Life 2 quality, it can still be entertaining-like watching a really bad horror movie. The musical scores in the game range from slow-sounding drums to fast-paced techno beats, but neither really set much of a mood. The battlefield sound effects are just enough to get by, but lacking any sort of punch to really immerse the player.

Overall, Warriors Orochi is a simple Playstation 2 port for the PC. It doesn't stack up against PC games 4-5 years ago in nearly every category. However, it is what many have come to expect from both Dynasty Warriors and Samurai Warriors, which is a hack-and-slash action game that adds a few more elements such as tag teams and blends the two series together, giving the player a hefty arsenal of character to play. Unfortunately, a veteran of the series would have purchased Warriors Orochi last September when it was first released for the consoles, so only newcomers or the hardcore fans would be interested in the PC version. But, in the end, if you're really looking for that next hack-and-slash experience in Warriors Orochi, grab one of the console versions instead.

By
Derek Hidey
CCC Freelance Writer

RATING OUT OF 5

RATING DESCRIPTION

2.0

GraphicsDated and low-res with a max resolution of 1024x768.

2.5

ControlNo mouse support and keyboard controls are cumbersome. Controllers work as expected.

2.0

Music
/ Sound FX / Voice ActingSterile music and barely noticeable sound effects are only outmatched by the sheer awful voice acting, which could prove entertaining in a comedic way.

3.5

Play
ValueInvolves the same hack-and-slash gameplay that veterans love.

2.5

Overall Rating -
AverageNot an average. See Rating legend above for a final score breakdown.

Game Features:

Story Mode - In the game's Story Mode, you can take on the Serpent King in four different storylines (Wei, Wu, Shu, or Samurai Warriors). You can change the character you control depending on the Scenario. Satisfy certain conditions to unlock new characters and scenarios.

Free Mode - In Free Mode, play with any unlocked character in the Scenario of your choice. You can also choose from the characters and scenarios that are currently available in Story Mode. Character development is the same in both Story Mode and Free Mode.

Universes Collide - Play as an of the 77 legendary characters from the Dynasty Warriors and Samurai Warriors video game series. There are also two new unlockable characters, Orochi and Da Ji.

Tag Team System - Go into battle with your own three-person tag team using characters from either series. At any given time, one warrior will be engaged in battle, while the other two are recuperating, restoring their Life Meters and Musou Gauges. While battling, the play can rotation among the characters in real-time.